Chalk dominates Laurel Park stakes

Bern Identity has won three stakes in a row after a 553-day layoff (Maryland Jockey Club/Jim McCue) Laurel Park offered four stakes races on Saturday’s card to kick off their opening weekend. In the 8TH race, George and Lori Hall’s Bern Identity fought hard to the wire to capture the $100,000 Dave’s Friend Stakes by a length. Sent to post as the 3-5 betting choice, Bern Identity crossed the wire in 1:08 4/5 for the 6-furlong distance over the fast main track with Charles Lopez up. “My horse is a good horse,” jockey Charles Lopez said. “The game plan was to get to the front and improve my position. I knew I was going to have some company down the backside so I tried not to panic. I was keeping him next to me without using my horse too much. He went about his business and dug in the last part to hang on.”

The Kelly Breen trainee has now won three stakes races at three different
tracks in the last 35 days after a 553-day layoff. The Indian Charlie colt took
My Frenchman at Monmouth Park on August 2 and Tale of the Cat Stakes at Saratoga
on August 22 before this victory. Bern Identity won three races as a
two-year-old in 2012, including the Grade 2 Hopeful and was on the Triple Crown
trail before being injured breaking out of the gate in the Grade 3 Holy Bull
Stakes in his three-year-old debut.

“This is a little bit of validation” Breen said. “We were thinking about the
Breeders’ Cup. He needed a fast time so this is a big stepping stone for him. I
can’t believe we got him back to this level. He has his problems. He came back
from injury after 20 months off. This horse has a lot of heart.”

The four-year-old bay paid $3.40 and improved his record to 10-6-2-1, with
lifetime earnings of $782,200.

Legendary scored in the Japan Racing Association to capture his fist stakes in the U.S.   (Maryland Jockey Club/Jim McCue) In the final stakes race on the card, Walter R. Swinburn’s Legendary enjoyed a clean stalking trip, picking off the leaders straightening for home and drawing off to win the grassy, $100,000 Japan Racing Association Stakes. The Fair Hill, Maryland based runner, who was making his fifth start in the United States, was scoring his first stakes win for trainer Niall Saville after campaigning previously in England. A minor stakes winner in Great Britain, he previously posted two wins at Belmont Park and a third place finish in the Lure Stakes at Saratoga. “He’s the least mature five-year old I ever had,” Saville said. “When we brought him over here from Great Britain he was a very nervous horse. The biggest thing was to get him to relax. I took him to Keeneland and Rosie Napravnik worked with him and took him a mile and a half just to educate him. She got him to settle. That’s all we wanted to achieve there. Two months ago I wouldn’t have run him here. Today he just relaxed to the pace perfectly.”

The bay gelding paid $4.80 as the 7-5 favorite and has a career mark of
18-5-5-2, $173,206. Sheldon Russell guided Legendary to a 2-1/4 length victory
in 1:41 2/5 for the 1 1/16-mile contest over the firm turf.

“It was a perfect set-up and a perfect trip,” Russell said. “Niall and Mr.
Swinburn really liked him today. The pace felt honest. At the 3/8ths pole I was
really happy as he was traveling very well and starting to move. When we hit the
front, I tapped him once and he really exploded.”

Eighttofasttocatch, making his season debut, led for the first three-quarters
but faded to last. The Tim Keefe trainee, who has won 10 career stakes races,
nine on the Laurel main track, will attempt to win his third Maryland Million
Classic in four years here on October 18.

“Obviously I was looking for a different outcome,” Keefe said. “First race
back but I was comfortable with where he is, it just didn’t work out. I am
disappointed but the ultimate goal is the Maryland Million Classic. We will be
back on the dirt, the surface he likes, and running on a day he likes.”

Earlier on the card, Harold Queen’s Sheer Drama won as the crowd favorite in
the $100,000
Thirty
Eight Go Go Stakes for fillies and mares.

Trevor McCarthy gave a confident performance aboard the four-year old David
Fawkes trainee. Sheer Drama covered the one mile distance over the fast main
track in 1:35 3/5 and paid $4.60 as the 6-5 favorite.

“She was the best horse in the race,” McCarthy said. “The idea was to keep
her out of trouble and let her go when it was time. At the start of the race it
was a little tight down the backside. I let her sit where she was comfortable. I
had her move up at the 3/8ths pole and when it was time to go in the stretch she
was ready.” 

The daughter of Burning Roma set a track record here at 1 1/16 miles last
September during her three-year-old campaign.

“She likes Maryland,” assistant trainer Scott Acker said. “We’re going to
stay here and train for the next race. We got one stall. It looks like they have
a race at Presque Isle for her. I’m glad we got the jockey. He’s a good one to
have and he rode her very well.”

Sheer Drama has a career mark of 11-3-4-1 and $203,920 in lifetime earnings.

In the first stakes race, Dylan Smith, who graduated to trainer this spring
after Maryland legend Dickie Small passed away, won her first stakes when Brooke
Bowman’s Vielsalm galloped home to win the $100,000
All
Brandy Stakes.

“Very exciting and also a little emotional,” Smith said. “Dickie was excited
about this filly.”

This was the first stakes victory for Vielsalm as well, in a race restricted
to Maryland-bred fillies and mares. Julian Pimentel guided the daughter of
Fairbanks from last to first, saving ground and then moving between horses to
win by a neck.

“The mile and an eighth was much better for her today,” Pimentel said. “I
saved ground on both turns and had the perfect trip. On the rail, everything
opened up and I got through. When I asked her for run, she got through and took
off. It worked out great.”

Vielsalm covered 1 1/8 miles in 1:49 4/5 over the firm turf and paid $21.20
for the victory. The four-year-old bay filly has a career line which reads
22-4-6-4, $

“Last time we ran her at 7 1/2 at Delaware as a prep because we couldn’t get
her in a longer race,” Smith added. “This horse is the type the older she gets
the better she gets. Julian gets along with her so well. She gets real fussy and
he knows how to deal with her.”

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